Window cleaners to return spring sparkle to Regina’s tallest buildings

When some of Regina’s tallest buildings need to shine, Robert Clark is one of those providing it.

Clark is the high-rise manager with Capital Window Cleaning, meaning he’s one of the people who descend buildings in Regina to give them their cleaning. He said some of the taller buildings they work on are about 80 metres tall – more than 260 feet.

“We use rope access – rope and a chair – and start from the top and go down, two windows wide. Each guy takes two windows and goes down,” Clark said. “We have two ropes – one’s a backup and one’s the working line – with a rappelling descender and the chair is built into our harness. We’re hanging off the side of the building by a rope.”

And things can get interesting if the wind picks up.

“You’ve got to hold yourself in place with suction cups on the windows,” Clark said. He explained that if it gets too windy, often they can’t work.

“A lot of time with wind, we have to worry about messing up the clean windows. In the chair, I’ve worked as high as 50 (kilometre-per-hour winds). In the swing stage, we don’t work anything higher than 30 kilometre-per-hour winds.

“There have been a few days where the suction cups let go and you blow over four windows and bump into the guy next to you. I’ve actually blown out and around the guy next to me and then I have to climb back around him to get back into place.”

He has been the source of some impromptu humour at board meetings in the past.

“I’ve scared a few people. I’ve dropped down in front of their window and they didn’t realize I was going to be there because sometimes we drop down real quick and just slam the suction cup on,” Clark said.

“I’ve dropped down beside some board meetings and everyone in the room could see me except for the guy talking and he had his back to the window and then when he turned around, I was there and everyone laughed and he jumped.”

With the snow melting and spring in Saskatchewan, window washers are about to enter one of their busiest times of the year.

“It’s going to be hectic. The windows are dirty and everyone just wants their windows cleaned right now,” Clark said. “We’re probably going to do a whole wall of Tower 1, close to a thousand windows between three guys (in one day).”

And there is a technique to getting the windows spotless.

“(You have to use) quick, smooth motions. You usually cut up one side along the top, cut down the other side and then you just rock back and forth taking off the top and work your way to the bottom and clean off at the bottom of the frame,” Clark said.